It is a time of fear in the face of freedom, a time of an emptying country and swelling cities, a time for the widening of previous roads and the opening of new paths, yet a time when these paths are mined by knowing algorithms of the all-seeing eye. It is the time of the warrior's peace and the miser's charity, when the planting of a seed is an act of conscientious objection. These are the times when maps fade, old landmarks crumble and direction is lost. Forwards is backwards now, so we glance sideways at the strange lands through which we are all passing, knowing for certain only that our destination has disappeared. We are unready to meet these times, but we proceed nonetheless, adapting as we wander, reshaping the Earth with every tread. Behind us we have left the old times, the standard times, the high times. Welcome to the irregular times.

Media Silence On Green Party Convention… From Green Party Media

Last weekend was the national convention of the Green Party. 2012 presidential candidate Jill Stein was the keynote speaker. I had no idea it had happened at all until this morning – three days later. Even now that I’ve learned about the event, I couldn’t tell you much about what happened there.

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7 comments to Media Silence On Green Party Convention… From Green Party Media

I’m even less informed than you, despite hours of ingestion of MSM reports every day. This situation reflects the enervated condition of democracy in this country. None of the weekend talks shows mentioned the Green proceedings, let alone had Green leaders stating their opinions about issues. I suspect many of us who complain here and on other progressive sites bear responsibility. I simply have too much to do, and have no acquaintances where I live who know what the Green party is, let alone what it’s doing. That being said, we need something radically different from what was tried in the 2011-2012 election season by the “major” alternative candidates like Stein, Anderson, and Johnson. We need to focus on someone who’s been allowed to appear in the MSM, such as Smiley, Jones, Kucinich, and a few others. One of them needs to announce now that he/she is vying with Stein for leadership in 2014 and 2016. And then that person needs to get busy with innovative message delivery. I think the most effective way to emasculate the duopoly, using existing levers of power, has yet to be launched.

The observations (or rather, absence of observations) reported in this story are symptomatic of what has always caused me to kinda chuckle at the Green Party and then quickly get back to whatever it was I was doing. I would love to see a smart, effective, hard-charging progressive third party arise in this country so I wouldn’t have to keep making excuses for the dang Democrats. Alas, the Greens ain’t it, never were it, and don’t threaten to ever become it. An amateur operation with a tin ear, no political savvy, and a profound commitment to the time-tested if-you-build-it-they-will-come principle, they are never in danger of accomplishing more than bleeding maybe half-a-percent away from Democratic vote tallies, thus throwing a close election to the Republicans. Basically, the left-wing equivalent of the Tea Party, only not nearly as effective or well-received. Thanks, but no thanks.

I agree, Bill, except for the part in which you suggest that the Green Party’s ineptitude is a reasonable justification for your making excuses for the Democratic Party. The Democrats aren’t just failing to stand up to nasty right wing policies. They’re now promoting nasty right wing policies.

We need to speak the truth about all political parties, not just the one’s we’re not aligned with.

Charles, on the Irresponsibility Index threatening to shut down the government if you don’t get what you want is amateur hour compared to threatening to hand the government to the Republicans if you don’t get what you want. Drowning kittens in a sack would be more mature.

Bill, couldn’t one say that Democratic Party candidates implicitly or explicitly threaten voters the same way in each election: I may not be what you want in office, but if you don’t vote for me govt goes to the Republicans?

Who’s threatening to hand the government to the Republicans, Bill? I don’t recall anyone making such a threat in the last cycle.

I think the first principle third party or unaffiliated candidates should announce is that they reject the argument that voting for them will give the Republicans an advantage. Rocky Anderson (whom I supported) made that point eloquently, although it wasn’t the first item on his agenda..

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